The Young and the Restless (YR) News: Forty-Fifth Anniversary Celebration Affirms Y&R’s Place On Soap Opera’s Mount Rushmore

‘The Young and the Restless’ debuted on March 26, 1973. The steamer went on to arguably claim its place on soap opera’s Mount Rushmore. CBS celebrates the show’s forty-fifth anniversary this week with particularly dramatic storylines and the return of characters from past decades.

Picking four daytime dramas as the best of all-time is fully subjective. All who choose to include Y&R stand on solid ground, based on its longevity, impact on the entertainment culture and current reign (29 years) as daytime’s leading broadcast network drama.

Again, this is an opinion, but Y&R could be placed with three other soaps as the best of all-time. That short list would include ‘Guiding Light’, ‘General Hospital’ and ‘Days of Our Lives’.

GL remains the longest-running soap opera ever, having been broadcast on radio and television for an astonishing, likely never to be topped 72 years (1937-2009). GH has been on ABC since 1963. Days debuted on NBC in 1965.

Longevity is the strongest counter to debate that would place other great soaps like ‘As the World Turns, ‘Another World’, ‘One Life to Live’, ‘All My Children’, ‘Search for Tomorrow’, ‘The Edge of Night’, ‘Love of Life’, ‘Dark Shadows’, or others ahead of one, or more of the Mount Rushmore dramas. A mix of logical and emotional arguments can be made for each steamer’s particular greatness.

William and Lee Phillip Bell were the husband and wife team that created Y&R, along with its spinoff show ‘The Bold and the Beautiful’. That currently running soap debuted on CBS in 1987 and is still running, which allows it to also rank highly with all other daytime dramas.

Victor Newman’s (Eric Braeden) literally fall into a coma leads this week’s storylines. While he’ll initially be a suspect in having attacked the ‘Moustache’, Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman) will help his longtime nemesis, after some deliberation.

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The love of Victor’s life has been and will always remain Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott), who’ll be at his hospital bed side. ‘Niktor’ easily ranks with all other soap couples in history. ‘Shick’ (Sharon, Sharon Case and Nick, Joshua Morrow) became the 1990’s version of daytime’s best couples. This pairing’s place in Y&Rs history is now being revisited.

Elsewhere in Genoa City clans including the Williams’, Winters’, Ashby’s, Baldwin’s and others are living their lives. The characters within those families and others remain loved by Y&R’s devoted fans.

But an ode to GC wouldn’t be complete without a mention of the ‘Duchess’. Surely Katherine Chancellor (played by the incredibly great, late Jeanne Cooper) will continue watching over everyone from her cloud in Heaven as the forth-fifth anniversary celebration is projected this week.

Soap Opera Spy is a leading source for everything linked to ‘The Young and the Restless’.

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